German Minister of State for Culture and the Media Claudia Roth said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan misled European leaders with democratic rhetoric that masked his authoritarian ambitions and that his government’s recent crackdown has erased the possibility of renewed EU accession talks.
In an interview with journalist Cansu Çamlıbel published Monday by the T24 Turkish news website, Roth said European governments initially believed Erdoğan’s early promises about building a more democratic Turkey. She admitted that she had been among those convinced that Erdoğan would challenge Turkey’s military-dominated establishment in favor of civil liberties, including religious freedom and Kurdish rights.
“I wanted to believe him,” Roth said, calling herself one of the “romantic Europeans” who were hopeful that Erdoğan would deliver real democratic reforms. “Now I see I was naive.”
During his early years in power, Erdoğan positioned himself as a pro-European reformer. Turkey, which was recognized as a candidate for full EU membership in December 1999, officially began accession negotiations with the EU in October 2005 under his leadership as prime minister. These developments were seen as significant milestones in Turkey’s efforts to align with European democratic standards and legal frameworks. However, the accession process has been stalled since 2016 due to concerns over human rights, press freedom and the rule of law in Turkey. In 2017 EU officials said the strong presidency created by a 2017 referendum, giving Erdoğan vast powers, would violate the Copenhagen criteria of eligibility for EU membership.
Roth, a longtime member of Germany’s Alliance 90/The Greens party and one of Europe’s most outspoken politicians on Turkey, said she no longer believes the European Union can shake hands with Erdoğan’s government “as if nothing happened” after the arrest of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and the large-scale repression that followed.
Roth said that only weeks before the March 19 detention of İmamoğlu, a frontrunner for the opposition in Turkey and Erdoğan’s top rival, the German Foreign Ministry had been seriously considering a fresh push to restart stalled EU accession negotiations. Roth said the Erdoğan government’s response to the protests that followed İmamoğlu’s detention and subsequent arrest, including police crackdowns and judicial targeting of journalists, students and opposition figures, reversed those discussions.
“A country where a mayor elected three times is jailed in this way should not be allowed through the door of the European Union,” Roth said.
The minister said she traveled to İstanbul on her own initiative to express solidarity with pro-democracy forces and was dismayed that the Turkish government had refused her requests to visit İmamoğlu in prison. She said she had never received permission to visit other high-profile detainees like Kurdish politician Leyla Zana or former Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş, although she was allowed to attend the trial of philanthropist Osman Kavala.
Roth recalled her experiences during the 2013 Gezi Park protests, when she was caught in a police tear gas attack while staying at a nearby hotel. She said the memory had remained with her and was one reason she continued to speak out. She also pointed to reports that Turks were boycotting businesses seen as loyal to the government as signs of creative resistance to the current crackdown.
“This is not Russia,” Roth said. “The Turkish people care deeply about elections and their right to choose.”
She said the arrest of İmamoğlu along with hundreds of others and the cancellation of his university degree showed how far Turkey’s institutions had been politicized. She added that Turkish courts could demonstrate their independence only by implementing European Court of Human Rights rulings in the cases of Kavala and Demirtaş, both of whom remain in prison.
Addressing the recent overtures between Erdoğan and pro-Kurdish figures, including the call by Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), for the PKK’s dissolution for a new peace initiative, Roth said she was skeptical. She warned that Erdoğan’s efforts may be aimed at dividing the opposition and reducing support for the Republican People’s Party (CHP), which currently enjoys significant Kurdish voter backing.
“If this were a real peace process, political prisoners would be released and elected Kurdish mayors would return to office,” she said.
Roth, who said she has visited Turkey many times since 1986, criticized European governments for turning a blind eye to Erdoğan’s authoritarianism in exchange for cooperation on issues like migration. She specifically noted the 2016 refugee deal between the EU and Turkey, which saw Brussels provide billions of euros in exchange for Ankara stopping refugees from reaching Europe.
“Authoritarian tendencies have weakened Turkey,” she said. “What has weakened Turkey is not Europe, but the actions and decisions of its own government.”
She said Europe must not prioritize transactional diplomacy over democratic values and that the protests now taking place across Turkey, including in traditionally pro-government areas like Trabzon and Rize, gave her hope. Roth said she hopes Turkish business leaders also realize the long-term economic cost of jailing elected opposition figures and ongoing political instability.
Asked whether Erdoğan now regrets the crackdown, Roth said she believes he underestimated the level of public backlash.
“If the protests continue, and the economic situation remains fragile, his room to maneuver will keep shrinking,” she said.